Goodbyes are the Hardest

This past Sunday night we honored our graduating seniors at Rose Hill Church of Christ. This has been a special class to me. I got to watch them over the last year go through many different victories and struggles, mountains and valley, but through it all most experienced growth; growth in Christ, growth in maturity, and growth in friendships.

I think, for a youth minister, there is always going to be some of your students that you wished you had more time with and that's true with this class. I have some students who are on the verge of really breaking out and realizing what God is calling them to do. I pray daily that this growth will continue and they will continue to see God's call in each of their lives.

Over the last year, we have laughed, cried, argued, and pretty much every emotion in between. If there is an emotion, we experienced. We strived to be a family who felt safe to share with one another our victories and defeats, our struggles and our praises. We aren't quite there, but I am sure that the foundation that this class has built will be the start of something great within our ministry.

While it's always hard to say goodbye, it is time to move on to the next chapter of their life. I will watch anxiously as God continues to guide them along the way, while I pray everyday that we have created a faith in them that is at the core of who they are and sticks through their college years when times get tougher and new responsibilities come their way.

As we congratulate our graduating seniors and welcome our incoming students, I would like to end this blog post with some of my favorite memories over the last year:

- Making a Harlem shake video using JJ's jeep for light in the darkness
- Going to Burger King on Wednesday nights and staying until they kicked us out (closing time)
- Getting 25 or more pies to the face at VBS because y'all reached a goal
- All the random moments and thing that kept me on my toes
- The walking dead parties and tour! (and adding more dead fans with each watch party)
- Watching you guys serve our community whether it was feeding the homeless, passing out socks, washing cars, or painting a shed
-Finding the tombstone while re-painting Ms. Hurst's shed (and knowing Paul would want a picture with it)
- The many trips and the bonding time that came along with it!

We've had so many great times together and still have time this summer to make even more memories. While the time is drawing near, for our seniors to move on, I look forward to the difference that they can still make within our ministry this summer. It's never too late to make an impact!

 

"Don't cry because it's over... smile because it happened"

The Holiness of God (Part 2)

God's Transcendent Majesty

First let’s read Isaiah 6:1-8 together 

In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a high and lofty throne, and His robe filled the temple. 2 Seraphim were standing above Him; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. 

3 And one called to another: Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Hosts; His glory fills the whole earth.

4 The foundations of the doorways shook at the sound of their voices, and the temple was filled with smoke. 5 Then I said: Woe is me for I am ruined because I am a man of unclean lips and live among a people of unclean lips, and because my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of Hosts. 6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me, and in his hand was a glowing coal that he had taken from the altar with tongs. 7 He touched my mouth with it and said: Now that this has touched your lips, your wickedness is removed and your sin is atoned for. 

8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying: Who should I send? Who will go for Us? I said: Here I am. Send me.

Let’s define Transcendent Majesty

i. Transcendent = all surpassing, above and beyond anything else
ii. Majesty = includes all of God’s power and authority, royalty, dignity, and splendor.
iii. Transcendent Majesty speaks of the infinite power, authority, royalty, dignity, and splendor that is God’s

Isaiah gives us three descriptive phrases in these verses when talking about God.

                                                                         i.     He is sitting upon a throne

                                                                       ii.     He is high and lifted up

                                                                      iii.    The train of his robe fills the temple

                     

                    God’s Throne

                                                               i.      The throne is symbolic of His reign and ruler ship.

                                                             ii.      God absolutely rules over all His creation in both heaven and earth. A sparrow cannot fall to the ground apart from His will. (Matt. 10:29). We cannot carry out the plans we make apart from His will (James 4:13-15). However, God does according to His will among those in Heaven and those who inhabit Earth (Daniel 4:35).

                                                            iii.   Due to God’s authority as creator, God has the right to set the rules of conduct for His moral creatures, enforce those rules, and act as the supreme judge of all moral beings, rewarding good and punishing evil.

 “High and Lifted up”

                                                               i.      This expression speaks of His supreme exaltation – the glorious display of God’s royalty, splendor, and glory.

 "The train of His robe fills the temple"

                                                               i.      This accentuates his royalty and splendor.

                                                             ii.      With bridal gowns today, the train is the apex (or focal point) of the dress, indicating to some degree the beauty and expensiveness of the dress.  The robe given to a King or Queen always includes a train, the length of it to display the royalty and splendor of the person being crowned. When Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain was crowned in 1953, her train was thirty-six feet long. It was made of velvet and trimmed in fur and was so heavy it had to be carried by six maids of honor, walking behind her.

                                                             iii.      A train shows royalty. God’s robe was so long it filled the temple, an expression intended to convey to us the infinite royalty, splendor, dignity, and majesty of God.

One of the earliest recorded references to the holiness of God occurs in the song of Moses after the Israelites had crossed the Red Sea and had seen God down the Egyptian army in the sea. In Exodus 15:11 you see them singing, “Who is like you, O Lord, among the Gods? Who is like you, majestic in holiness, awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders?”

 “Majestic in Holiness”

                                                               i.      In the episode of the Red Sea, this is a reference to God’s power and authority. Specifically the power to deliver the Israelite people from the pursuit of the mighty Egyptian army.

                                                             ii.      Consider the power of God in parting the Red Sea. He caused the waters to part and stand up like concrete walls and made the sea bottom as dry land for the Israelites to walk on (Exodus 14:21-29). And then through His same power, God released the parted waters to resume their normal course so the entire Egyptian army was drowned in the midst of the sea. No wonder the Israelites sang, “Who is like you, O Lord, among the Gods?” (Exodus 15:11)

Our God is holy and majestic. Isaiah's vision is a starting point to looking at the holiness of God and his transcendent majesty. He is also infinite in his moral purity and we will look at that subject in the next blog post.